Manufacture of thread or the like



Fb. 14, 1939. I w.F KNlBUSCH ET AL 2,146,748

MANUFACTURE OF THREAD OR THE LIKE Original Filed Feb. 18, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I42 o I 4 O O 4 o Z 2 5w 5a 5b I I 5b 5 C A: O 2?, 39 33 31 5 c l o O f] Z2 /9 22 7 5h 2/ 20 z/ E TD 39 .I 58 I 2 J7 5 3,"

INVENTORS WALTER F. KNEBUSCH ALDEN H. BURKHOLDER ATTORNEY Feb. 14, 1939. w. P. KNEBUSCH ET AL 2,146,748

MANUFACTURE OF THREAD OR THE LIKE Original Filed Feb. 18, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig.5

INVENTORS WALTER F. KNEBUSCH ALDEN H .BURKHQLDER ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 14, 1939 UNITED STATES MANUFACTURE OF THREAD OR. THE LIKE Walter F. Knebusch and Alden H; Burkholder, Cleveland, Ohio, assignors to Industrial Rayon Corporation, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware 7 Original application February 18, 1935, Serialllo. 7,114. Divided and this application March 26,

1936, Serial No. 71,019

3 Claims.

This invention relates to apparatus for the manufacturev of thread .or the like.

The present application is a division of a prior application, Serial No. 7,114, filed February 18, 6 1935, by Walter F. Knebusch and Alden H. Burkholder, in which is shown, described, and broadly claimeda formof apparatus suitable for the continuous manufacture of thread or the like. On such apparatus, thread or the like, such, for ex- 10 ample, as viscose artificial silk thread, is extruded into a coagulating bath contained in a trough,

from which it is withdrawn by a suitable threadadvancing thread store device disposed generally above the trough. From the thread-advancing thread store device the thread or the like is passed downward to a series of vertically spaced threadadvancing thread store devices disposed in stepped arrangement on which the thread or the like is subjected to suitable processing treatments,

' the thread or the like being thereafter collected in package form by suitable collecting means. Thepresent application is directed to features shown and described, but not specifically claimed, in said prior application.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof, Figure 1 is an end elevation of a complete machine of the kind described in said prior application, parts being omitted for the sake of clear-' ness. Figure 2 is an elevation on a larger scale of ally to the upper left hand portion of Figure 1 and including the coagulating bath and associated apparatus. Figure 3 is an elevation, on an enlarged scale, corresponding to the upper portion 35 of Figure 2. Figure 4 is a side elevation, on the same scaleas Figure 2, of the upper portion of the right hand face of the machine in Figure l as seen from line 4-4 of Figure 1,p'arts being broken away or omitted for simplicity of illustration. Figure 5 is a longitudinal sectional elevation on an enlarged scale and corresponding generally to line 5-5 of Figure 6 of a reel which may be used as the thread-advancing thread store Figure 6 is an end elevation of the reel of Figure 5. In the drawings, like reference characters refer tolike parts throughout. 7

While the apparatus of 'thepresent invention is capable of use in or in connection with the manufacture of various kinds of thread or the like, as, for example,-artificial silk thread produced by the viscose, cuprammonium, nitrocellulose, cellulose acetate and similar processes, for convenience it will be described as applied to the impeding the discharge of the thread.

a portion of.themachine, corresponding generdevice in apparatus embodying the-invention.

manufacture of multiple filament viscose artificial silk thread.

- Referring first to Figures 1 and 2, the thread is formed by extrusion of the viscose from the spinning nozzle I into a coagulating bath con- 5 tained in the trough 2, being then led over guides 3, 4 to and along a suitable'self-threading threadadvancing reel 5 from'which it passes to any suit- I able number of like self-threading threadadvancing reels 5a to 5i, upon which are per- 10 formed any desired processing steps. The latter may be of cantilever construction; that is, they may be supported and driven from one end only, the other end being unobstructed by anything The thread is led from the last self-threading threadadvancing reel 52' toa collecting device, such as cap-twister 'l.

The production of each multiple filament thread requires a complete series of such parts, hereinafter referred to as a unit, including a spinning nozzle, a reel disposed generally'above the trough containing the coagulating bath, a series of reels in numbers sufficient to enable the neces-. sary or desirable steps to be performed upon the thread, and the collecting device. However, as is usual in this art, a given machine may be built to provide for the simultaneous production, of a multiplicity of threads, so that the machine includes a series of such units located and arranged with relation toeach other in such a manner as to enable the parts to be conveniently accessible for inspection, manipulation or repair. Thus in the instant machine the units are disposed along the longitudinal trough 2 containing the coagu- 35 lating bath, said trough being disposed at the upper portion of the machine with the processing reelsia to 51' disposed below the trough 2. The machine as a whole, as can be seen from Figure 1, is of double-sided construction, having two oppositely disposed, inclined banks of reels, with a separate trough for each bank of reels.

As in conventional practice, spinning nozzles i are supported by mass tubes 35, a plurality of such mass tubes 35 being supported on an apron extending along the working face of the trough, from which working face access by an operator on platform 9 may be had to the spinning nozzles for inspection, replacement, starting of the thread, etc. The reels 5', to which the threads pass from corresponding spinning nozzles I, are positioned generally above the trough 2 with their unsupported ends extending away from the working face of the trough and with their axes parallel to each other, normal to the longitudinal axis of u the trough, and disposed in a common horizontal plane. In the apparatus shown, no processing medium is applied to the thread while it is stored on reel 5, this reel thus providing an interval for further coagulation of the thread before it passes to the next reel 5a.

Each reel 5 is supported in the desired position by a downwardly extending bracket I82 fastened to the frame member I42 of the machine, which frame member is disposed above and parallel to trough 2. Each reel 5 is rotated, as shown in Figure 3, by a sprocket 58 fastened tothe drive shaft 59 of the reel, sprocket 58 being rotated by a chain 51 driven from sprocket 56 mounted on a short shaft 49. Each shaft 49 is driven from a horizontal drive shaft 43, which extends longitudinally of the machine, by means of a helical gear 41 mounted on shaft 43 mesh ing with helical gear 48 loosely rotatable upon the shaft 49. Helical gear 48 is provided with a clutch member 58 cooperating with a clutch member 5| splined to the shaft 49 and having a grooved collar 52 in the groove of which is a fork 53 of a rod 54 connected to one arm of a bell crank lever 55. Figure 3 shows the clutch members 58, 5| in engagement, so that shaft 49 is rotated by shaft 43.

The shaft 43 is driven by a gear 46 mounted thereon meshing with a gear 45 which is mounted on shaft 4| fixed on a bracket 42- pivoted to turn about a shaft 43 and held in any adjusted position by a cap-screw 44 passing into the frame through a curved slot in said bracket. Shaft 4| also carries a gear 48 fixed for rotation with gear 45 which is driven by a gear 39 mounted for rotation. with the short shaft 38. By turning the bell crank lever 55 clockwise as seen in Figure 2 or 3, the corresponding clutch may be disengaged to stop the rotation of the corre sponding reel 5. and, at any time, by loosening the cap-screw 44 and swinging arm 42 to the right the driving gearing may be disengaged. By stmstitution of a gear of different size for any one or more of the gears 39, 48, 45, 46 any desired speed ratio may be established between shafts 38 and 59 for change speed purposes, as will readily be understood. The short shaft 38 is rotated'by a sprocket 31 mounted thereon which sprocket is driven by a chain 36 through a suitable sprocket 28 which is adapted to be driven from a gear 24 mounted on a drive shaft 23 from which the reels 5a to 51' are also driven. Associated with sprocket 28 is another sprocket which is connected by chain 29 to a sprocket 38 on a short shaft 3| provided with a gear 32 which drivesa series of gears marked generally 33, the last one of which is on a horizontal shaft 34 which extends from end to end of the machine parallel to its front and is provided at each unit with suitable means for driving a spinning pump, not shown, which supplies -viscose to the mass tube 35 on which the spinneret l is mounted. The pumps on all units are therefore driven by the same shaft and at a uniform rate of speed, which may readily be varied by changing the size of any or all the change speed gears 33.

In the instant machine the reels 5a to 52' are arranged in a plurality of vertical series, on each of which the thread is subjected to the desired processing treatments. Since the reels shown are of cantilever form; i. e., supported and driven from one end only, and. since the thread is, by the action of the reels, advanced axially thereof, the reels may be positioned in stepped arrangement with the receiving or supported end of each reel immediately below the'dlscharge or free end of the next preceding reel. The open ends of the reels are thus presented to the operator. who may gain access thereto from the ladder I48 which may be adapted to slide across one of the operating faces of the machine; This arrangement of reels provides advantages in conience, the shafts 23 and the drive connections therefrom to the several reels may be located at one end of the machine, as shownin Figures 2 I and 4. Drive shaft 23 may be driven through gear 22, mounted'thereon, which meshes with gear 2| fixed for rotation to a shaft 28 which is driven from the speed reducing mechanism I 9 from a suitable motor, not shown. Each of reels 5a to 51' is adapted to be driven from one of the gears 63 mounted along and driven by shaft 23. Gear 63 drives gears 64', 65 which correspond to the previously mentioned gears 48, 45 and, like them, are mounted on an adjustable slotted bracket 86 mounted toswing around the axis of shaft 61 which is provided with a driven gear 68. Here also, by substituting a gear of different size for any one or more of gears 63, 64, 65, 68 any desired speed ratio may be established.

Shafts 61 are provided at intervals with suitable takc-off drive means for corresponding reels of different units in a horizontal series. The take-off drive means include spiral gears similar to the gears 41, 48 and clutch members similar to the clutch members 58, 5|. It will be understood that the same shaft 23 carries distributed along its length a plurality of gears 63 each of which drives a set of change speed mechanism. Shafts 6'! extend from end to end of the machine and at intervals are provided with means for driving the reels disposed therealong in the manner indicated above.

The reels of the present invention are preferably of the type shown in Figures 4 and 6, which reel is of the same general form and operates in the same manner as-the reel shown, described, and claimed in British Patent No. 413,414. The reel shown is, however, of cantilever'form in the sense that the supports for said reel-are connected to it at one end only, leaving theEhreadsupporting bars free and open at the other end of the reel. Therefore by rotating the reel in the proper direction to cause the turns of thread to travel from its driven end to its free end, the task' of transferring the thread from reel to reelis materially simplified due to the absence of a shaft extension and consequent ease of manipulation of the thread by the operator.

The typical form of reel shown in these figures includes two rigid, generally cylindrical members respectively designated 88 and 8|. 'Member 88 may be termed the concentric member because it is concentric with. fixed to. and rotates with the shaft 59. Member 88 includes a body portion of generally cylindrical form with its periphery slotted to form a series of alternating bars 82 and recesses 83, the body portion being mounted upon a sleeve 84 keyed to the shaft 58 and held in while it is generally of cylindrical form it is mounted with its axis laterally ofiset slightly from and disposed askew or inclined to the axis of the shaft 59. The member 8| as shown comprises a head formed of inner and outer rings 81, 88, the former of which has peripheral slots to receive the bars 89. The bars are clamped between the rings 81, 88, which are held together by screws 8 la. Inner ring 81, mounted on a'sleeve 90 journalled to rotate upon a supporting member 9| which surrounds shaft 59, and is supported with its axis slightly ofiset laterally from and askew with relation to the axis of shaft59.

Rotation of the drive shaft 59 causes concentric member 80 ,fixed thereto to rotate, whereupon contact of bar members 82 of concentric member 80 with bar members 89 of eccentric member 8| causes said eccentric member to rotate. The thread is thus caused to wind on the reel, the

degree of the askew relation determining the lead or pitch of the turns of thread wound in generally helical form upon the reel and' progressively advanced along it. With a reel of this general type any desired length of thread within reasonable limits may thus be temporarily continuously stored in a plurality of advancing turns.

Reels of the form shown in Figures 4 and 6 may be employed for each of the reels 5a to 572. inclusive, Figure 1, since it may be desirable to apply wet processing treatments to the thread while stored on these reels. However, it may be desired to dry the thread on the reel 51' before it is collected, as by cap-twister I, in which case the reel 51', while of the same general type and operating in the same general manner as the others, may be adapted to supply drying medium to the thread stored on the reel from the interior of the reel, as described in detail in said prior application Serial No. 7,114.

Means are provided for subjecting the thread on one or more of the reels 5a to 5h to suitable wet processing operations; to wit, means disposed above each of said reels for supplying :to said reel a spray or series of small streams of processing liquid, troughs for collecting said processing liquid as it drains from the reel, and apparatus for recirculating the liquid or conducting it to the sewer. By reference to Figures 2 and 4 it can be seen that the means for applying the processing liquid to the thread on each reel comprises a suitable reagent distributor H5 positioned above each reel and supplied from a common supply manifold 3 extending longitudinally of the machine. A trough |08 may be disposed below each of the wet processing reels, to collect the liquid, which trough may be provided with a re-entrant portion 8 below each reel to allow the transfer of the'thread from a higher reel to a lower reel.

Because of the arrangement of the reels in a machine in a plurality of horizontal or longitudinally extending series it is possible. to have each trough served several corresponding reels in adjacent series. Each trough I08 may communicate either with a sewer, asin the case of wash water or other liquid which is to be discarded, or, as in the case of liquids which it is desired to re-use, with suitable recirculating and makeup systems. Such a system is illustrated in Figure 4, in which the drain pipes I09 from the corresponding troughs I08 along the full length of the machine communicate with a pipe 1% leading to a collecting and make-up receptacle Hi], from which receptacle the liquid is pumped by pump .1 l2 to the corresponding reagent supply manifold H3.

Various changes and modifications may be made in the apparatus illustrated as embodying the invention without departing from the spirit thereof. The invention is in no way restricted to the employment of self-threading thread-advancing reels of the form shown: other threadadvancing thread store devices may be used instead. Likewise, the thread-advancing thread store devices may be disposed in other positions with respect to the coagulating trough. It is intended that the patent shall cover, by suitable expression in the appended claims, whatever features of patentable novelty reside in the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for the manufacture of thread or the like comprising a longitudinally extending coagulating trough having an operating face disposed along one side thereof; means in said trough for forming a plurality of separate threads, said means being accessible from the operating face of said trough; a plurality of self-threading thread store devices of cantilever form to each of which one of said threads passes from said coagulating trough, said devices being disposed above the level of the liquid in said coagulating trough, having their axes at an angle to a vertical plane parallel to the longitudinal axis of said coagulating trough, and having their supported ends within reach from the operating face of said coagulating trough; and take-up means to which said threads passv from the unsupported ends of said thread store devices.

2. Apparatus of the character described in claim 1 in which the unsupported ends of said devices extend away from and beyond the lateral limits of said coagulating trough. 1

3. Apparatus of the character described in claim 1 in which the supported ends of said devices are so disposed that liquid carried over to said devices tends to return along said-threads to said coagulating trough.

' WALTER F. xnnnuscn.

ALDEN n. aumomm 

